To celebrate Smokey Robinson's 50th anniversary as a recording artist, Reelin' In The Years Productions and Universal Music Enterprises on November 21, 2006 released "Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - Definitive Performances 1963 - 1987" on DVD. Featured for the first time on DVD are 15 classic full-length performances from Motown's pioneering vocal group taken from television appearances spanning their entire career. Also included are three performances of top-ten hits from Smokey Robinson's solo years. Issued with the full cooperation of The Miracles and their estates, this is the first official DVD anthology of classic archival television performances by the group. Continuing in the tradition of "Marvin Gaye -- The Real Thing In Performance 1964 - 1981" and "The Temptations -- Get Ready! The Definitive Performances 1965 - 1972," released earlier this year, the Smokey Robinson & The Miracles DVD includes a wealth of classic performances with re-mastered sound and video, plus, as an extra-special bonus, Smokey Robinson and original Miracles Pete Moore and Bobby Rogers reunite to give their first-ever in-depth interview about the history of the group -- more than 70 minutes of stories about The Miracles, Motown, and their incredible songs!
"Smokey Robinson & The Miracles -- Definitive Performances 1963 - 1987" begins with a staggering performance of their 1962-63 hit "You've Really Got A Hold On Me" filmed at the Apollo Theatre during the famous 1963 Motortown Review. The DVD then progresses through the group's entire career with Smokey leading The Miracles through classic performances of "Shop Around," "Mickey's Monkey," "Ooo Baby Baby," "The Tracks Of My Tears" and "Going To A Go-Go." Also featured is a performance of "I Second That Emotion" from "The Mike Douglas Show" in 1968 and the #1, million-selling hit "The Tears Of A Clown" filmed in 1970 when the song was just beginning its climb up the charts.
Also featured on the DVD are performances by The Miracles after Smokey left the group and featuring Billy Griffin on lead vocals. Included from the Griffin-era Miracles are performances of "Do It Baby" and their #1 hit, the multi-million-seller "Love Machine," both from 1976. Rounding out the DVD are three classic performances from Smokey's solo years: "Cruisin'," "Being With You" and the GRAMMY® award-winning "Just To See Her."
Interspersed between the performances are segments from the historic Smokey Robinson & The Miracles reunion interview, conducted exclusively for this DVD. Featured for the first time anywhere are over 70 minutes of interviews where Smokey and original Miracles Pete Moore and Bobby Rogers recount the history of the group from their early childhood days as friends through the early years of the Miracles and the formation of Motown, all the way up to the present. Also included are the stories behind each song on the DVD as well as other amazing reminiscences including stories about their first performance at the Apollo Theatre and Motown's legendary studio band "The Funk Brothers."
In addition to the television performances, the bonus section of "Smokey Robinson & The Miracles -- Definitive Performances 1963 - 1987" DVD includes a host of unique bonus content including an audio-only feature of eight original a cappella (lead and background vocals only) performances of The Miracles' classic hits discovered in the Motown vaults, and now available on this DVD for the first time anywhere. Fans will feel as if they're in the original Motown recording booth with the group when they hear The Miracles' original vocal masters for "Ooo Baby Baby," "My Girl Has Gone," "The Tears Of A Clown" and five more.
"Smokey Robinson & The Miracles -- Definitive Performances 1963 - 1987" also features a 24-page booklet with an extensive essay by GRAMMY® award-winning writer, Rob Bowman, including rare photographs and memorabilia. Also part of the bonus features section are additional interview segments from the historic Smokey Robinson & The Miracles reunion interview as well as a picture-in-picture section where the viewer can experience the reunited Miracles watching the 1963 performance of "You've Really Got A Hold On Me" for the first time in over 40 years.
For "Smokey Robinson & The Miracles -- Definitive Performances 1963 - 1987" every effort has been made to locate the best possible sound and video; each of the performances has been re-transferred and re-mastered from the best-quality, original masters (some resting in the television vaults for over 40 years). In the case of lip-sync performances, the original Motown stereo master recordings have been used, replacing the original mono broadcast sound and making for a much more enjoyable viewing and listening experience.
Reelin' In The Years Productions LLC is the largest music footage library in the world, housing over 10,000 hours of performances from all genres of music covering the last 50 years. Reelin' In The Years Productions' "The American Folk Blues Festival 1962-1969" three-volume DVD series has received critical acclaim, commercial success and numerous industry awards. "Volume One" was nominated for a GRAMMY award in the category of "Best Long Form Music Video," and "Volume One" and "Two" received The Blues Foundation's prestigious 2004 Keeping The Blues Alive (KBA) Award as well as Honorable Mention in Mojo Magazine's Honors List for best DVD of 2003. Other DVD releases include "Marvin Gaye -- The Real Thing In Performance 1962 - 1981," "The Temptations -- Get Ready! The Definitive Performances 1965 - 1972," "Marvin Gaye -- Live In Belgium 1981," and "Muddy Waters Classic Concerts." Current DVD projects include the first nine DVDs in the Jazz Icons series featuring classic concerts from the '50s and '60s from jazz legends including Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald. In addition, Reelin' In The Years Productions has provided footage for numerous DVDs including the platinum-selling "Led Zeppelin," "AC/DC -- Family Jewels," "The Police -- Synchronicity Concert," and "Elvis Costello -- The Right Spectacle -- The Videos."
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